The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1887-12-07

GOLD HUNTING IN the mountains OF the
far West is something which the gold
hunter along the ordinary highways of
business, honorable or otherwise, has q
very limited and imperfect conception. A
Helena, NJ. T., writer devotes some space
to the subject in the st. Louis Post-Dis-
patch. With the gold hunter, fortune is
as tickle as with other mortals who take
less risk. When the gold hunter STRIKES
it rich" he soon forgets his tolls and pri-
vations, and his speedily acquired wealth
is blown in" against faro bank, or is
lost in trying to master the intricacies of
draw poker" or some other equally fasci-
mating game. But when one fortune is
gone, the Establishments of civilization are
renowned, and the gold hunter, "often
with no other companion than stubborn
pack-mule, which he leads along by hal
ter, turns his back on such ciyili-
zation as border towns can boast of.
and hides himself among the awful soli-
tudes Of the mountains, where he remains,
except when he repairs to the nearest set
Elements to procure fresh supplies, pur-
suing his lonely and dangerous task until
the storms of winter compel him to seek
shelter again among the habitstions of his
fellow-men. If, perchance, he should
discover promising lead during his sum
mer explorations, then he builds himself
a snug cabin of logs, or If there is no tim
Der in the neighborhood, scoops out
hole in the side of q mountain aud, to
use his own expression, camps on the
prospect" His diet consists OF fat bacon.
bread OF his own manufacture, and coffee,
OCCASIONALLY varied by roasted grouse, a
slice of Venison or other game, supplied
by his own trusty rifle. And he makes
his nightly bed on the brown lap of mother
earth. The gold hunter In his search for
the precious metal, NEE is with many dis
appointments such as finding pilgrim
gold" or he washes dirt in the gulch, or
sinks shaft to bed "rock, only to find the
dirt won't pay. He scales almost perpen.
dicular cliffs. to find ore rich in silver and
lead, and In the moment of ecstacy,
discovers the walls of the lode
suddenly come together and the fortune
is "pinched out" And even when
expectations are realized, he is still in
danger of having his claim Jumped by
scamps in the employ Of men who make it
their business to rob the gold-hunter of
the reward of his tolls and sacrifices. They
are rich and inscriptions, and the lone
and friendless gold-hunter has little show
against such pirates. Such, says the
writer, is the real life of a gold-hunter, ex.
cept in few cases. After years of ex-
hsustiDg toll, and Just when his Efforts are
about to be crowned with success, others
step in and steal the fruits of his labors, or
by trickery and fraud reap the harvest
which he has sown. Those who so wrong
him are highly honored and respected in
the communities where they reside while
he, who first planted the standard OF civil
zation in the Western wilds, and won q
vast empire from the wilderness, steals
into an unknown grave, and such men be.
come mililonaires, and fill the world with
their fame. They get rich quickly, but
not honestly. And yet, whether stealing
land, robbing gold.hunters Of their claims,
watering stocks, cornering food products
or forming trusts and monopolies, they
keep well within the law" They are all
robbers of the poor, who maze the masse:
pay them tribute, and escape all penalties
and this is done in a land where IL is said
''an are equal before the law" aud while
such carbohydrates are going for ward,
men ask why Anarchists